WILMINGTON — Nemours Children's Health celebrated its new cardiac catheterization lab with a ribbon-cutting recently.

In honor of the new lab, the Fritz family shared its story of how six years ago, both Trever Fritz (now 11) and his father, Rob Fritz (now 39), were diagnosed with a congenital heart condition called atrial septal defect, which means they had holes in their hearts.

Trever was diagnosed with ASD at Nemours in 2015, and he went on to have surgery at the cardiac catheterization lab. After Trever’s successful surgery, his mom, Olivia, mentioned that her husband, Rob, was also diagnosed with ASD. Cardiac doctors at Nemours screened Rob, and it turned out his ASD was severe, and the same surgery his son had was recommended.

Both Trever and Rob had their cardiac catheterizations performed by world-renowned Nemours interventional cardiologist Wolfgang Radtke and are doing extremely well. During Rob’s surgery, it was found that he also has a rare immune disorder called Behcet’s disease, which causes blood vessel inflammation throughout the body. Rob would never have known about his condition if it were not for the cardiac team at Nemours.

The Nemours cardiac program has a national reputation for excellence, and the catheterization lab provides the only source in Delaware for emergent pediatric cardiac care. The expansion of the lab will increase access and decrease wait times, while keeping the safety of patients a top priority.